


Undeniable Chemistry

by loveofgayships



Category: Glee
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-10
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-06-08 08:15:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 12,985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15239184
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loveofgayships/pseuds/loveofgayships
Summary: What can you do when you have your whole life mapped out, from work, to who you were going to spend your life with, and you are met with someone who turns your world upside down?What can you do when you have resigned yourself to being alone and someone comes into your life, making you open your eyes to the new possibility of love?Continue reading to find out in this Samcedes fic





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So I am writing this story with Rontora (Tori) and we posted it on ff.net and thought to post it on here also. So if it seems familiar that is why. 
> 
> This is a samcedes fic and I hope you enjoy!

Mercedes Jones was running late, and she hated running late. The morning started out early enough but by the time she got the twins loaded up and dropped off at school she was behind schedule at least 30 minutes. Even though she had been living this life for ten years now, it wasn’t getting any easier. Ten years ago, she was a freshman at Georgetown University, entering her second semester, studying Fashion Design, when she was calle she got the call that no one ever wants to get. Her parents were involved in an accident and she needed to get home. So thinking she would go home, help out for a few days and return, she made her way home. 

 

But she didn’t find her parents in some hospital bed happy to see her, they were both in the ICU and she was left with some big decisions. Being a mother to her twin siblings who were 2 at the time was never something she thought would happen, and yet, as she sat in the hospital room watching her parents slip away, she couldn’t let anyone else have her family. They needed her, and she needed them. It wasn’t easy, going home to the place that reminded you of your mom and dad, it didn’t help her heal. So with the help of her best friends Santana, Rachel and Kurt, they helped her plan the funeral, sell her childhood home, and buy a place that didn’t have as many memories. 

 

Her parents didn’t leave them with many bills, and with the settlement from the accident, life insurance and selling of her home, she was able to play off any debts that was there, bury her parents in a very beautiful ceremony and still provide for her siblings. But that didn’t make life easier, she wanted to go back to school, but with raising the twins it wasn’t possible. So she took the time to help her siblings, taking them to any and everything they wanted to do. Showing up to games and performances and before she knew it, she wasn’t a carefree 18 year old loving life and finding her way. She was for all intended purposes a mom, taking care of her family and not really having a chance to live that life she wanted. 

 

Which brought her to today, Miles decided he wanted to sleep in, while Madison forgot to let Mercedes know she would need her cheerleading uniform dry cleaned for the Peewee game tonight. So after dropping them off to school and taking the uniform to the dry cleaners paying extra to have it done by 2pm, she made her way to the coffee shop to get her standing order before heading to work at Evans Corp. She had worked for Mr. and Mrs. Evans for three years now and she really loved the job and the benefits. They truly treated staff like family, it was a good feeling.

 

Walking out the door, her phone rang and she shifted the cup holder in her left arm, and pivoted to open the door with her backside, grabbing her phone she went to answer when her body collided with a strong force causing her to spill her two hot lattes down the front of her shirt.

 

“What the hell?!”

 

Sam hated the hustle and bustle of rush hour. He had no patience waiting in line for 10 minutes getting coffee, or sitting in traffic for twenty minutes because everyone had a 9-5 to get to. These are reasons that Sam doesn’t normally start his day until 11 and no matter where he is, tries to not get caught up in the evening rush hour nonsense. He would have woke up later, taken a nice shower with Quinn, had his cup of dark roast, which he can’t go a day without and probably read the paper all before ten. And today would have been the same 11 to 7 or whenever schedule, but Quinn has dinner reservations tonight, and had asked him to get home at a decent time. Whatever that means. It’s just a means to find some way to irritate him. Though he guesses he is being unfair to her, and he blames the whole not being a morning person on his moody behavior. And even though he hates this whole rush hour business, he is sure that his mother would be grateful to Quinn, because being late on my first day as CEO would not look good for her or the company. 

 

If Sam was being honest with himself, he can also blame his nerves. Today is the first day of him being CEO of Evans Corp. A position that he has been groomed for since he learned how to basically walk. His father and mother built this company up from the ground and put all of their blood and sweat into it, and now it’s Sam’s turn. He knows everything there is to know, about running this company. He remembers the countless board meeting he sat on with his parents, and the many late night lectures about his future when he decided that backpacking through Europe for a year was a much better option than going to school. His parents relented realizing that he needed some time for himself before the six years of college that were ahead of him. And it made such a difference. Sam loved the whole year he got of freedom. No responsibilities, just him enjoying being an eighteen year old.

 

When it was time to go back to school, he was more than ready and he was more focused than he has ever been. He knew what his parents expected of him, and since they do relent when he needs them to, he wants to be everything that they want him to be. And it could be worse than being a CEO of a million dollar company. How many college grads can say that they have a career with one of the Top companies in this nation? Not many. Sam has a beautiful girlfriend, a great job, and a supportive family. What else could he possibly want.

 

And that was the thought that was running through his head when he rushed into the coffee shop to get some mediocre coffee, and head back into the hustle and bustle of the city just to get started on his first day. He must have been too in his head because before he knew it, he bumped into a soft body and felt hot liquid spill a little on his hand. 

 

“Is it too much to ask for people to watch where they are going?” Before he could say what else was on his mind, he happened to see the source of his frustration as he looked into some big doe brown eyes, that was scowling. It would be cute and adorable if he wasn’t so irritated. No, he will not be swayed by pretty eyes, lips, and from what he can tell, a nice little body. “You should really watch where you’re going next time. It’s too early for this.”

 

Startled for a moment, Mercedes stared into the irritated green eyes and as the scolding drink slide down the front of her white blouse and black pencil skirt, his words sent her over the edge. “Excuse me? Do you not see this?”

The cups dropped to the floor and she shifted her purse on her shoulder so she could stand toe to toe with this man who blamed her for his mistake.

 

“You do realize that coffee house etiquette is to allow the person leaving to exit before you barge in, furthermore as a man you should have done the right thing and held the door open instead of crashing into me and probably giving me first degree burns all down my body. But hey its 2018 and I forgot chivalry is dead.” 

 

As a small crowd gathered wanting to either get into the place or leave, she held her head up high not wanting to cause a scene. Bending down, she grabbed the cups of coffee and tops, not wanting to leave it there, she hated littering such a great place. Turning to the man she finally got a good look at him, any other day and any other time, she would appreciate just how green his eyes were, how handsome his features and shes felt how hard his chest was, but the liquid dripping down her body took over her thoughts. 

 

“Here’s a free tip for you, next time you run into someone, don’t be such a dick.”

 

Moving to the trash can she disposed the broken cups. Her best friend Kurt rush to her side. 

 

“Oh my goodness Mercy me I saw the whole thing are you okay?”

 

“Yeah I just… can I run up to your place real quick please?”

 

Kurt nodded. “Go ahead, and when you are done, there will be two new cups hot and ready for you to go.”

 

“Thanks boo, I just can’t believe this.”

  
She squeezed his hands, then left out the back up to his apartment above the coffee shop. She and Kurt had been friends ever since the first grade. She was the first person he came out too and, he was the first person she ever let her guard down with. As she went into his closet, she thankfully grabbed the spare dress she had over there. With the Coffee shop in between her house and her job, on those Mornings where she knew she wasn’t going to have time to shower and drop the kids off. Kurt let her use his guest bathroom and closet.

 

Cleaning herself up quickly, she changed out of the skirt and top and into a dark blush lace bodycon dress, with a silk dark blush underlay, thank goodness her black heels still matched. It didn’t take her more than 15 minutes to finish up and head back down. After kissing Kurt on the cheek, she thanked him again, grabbed the coffees and made her way to her SUV so she could get to work, she knew she was late, but thank goodness, Mary understood.

 

No matter how irritated Sam tried to be, the little lady made him more amused than anything. She couldn't have been no more than 5’4 with heels, trying to stand toe to toe with his 6’0 frame. He would have smirked and gave witty come back, but he had no time, and plus with the way she was going, he really couldn’t get a word in edgewise. Which was probably for the best because he was already running late, and if he wanted to get out in time to meet Quinn, he had to get to the office soon. Also,he didn’t really want to cause a scene. So as she was leaving, he said “And you have a good day to.” 

 

He continued into the shop and ordered his dark roast all the while noticing the barista giving him dirty looks. And he was not in the mood to wonder if he was going to spit into his drink or anything. 

 

“On second thought, never mind.” He opened his wallet, and put a twenty dollar bill in the jar. “For your troubles.” He flashed his signature smile before leaving the shop. He would just have to settle for some coffee at the office. And hope that just because today started out shitty, the rest of the day won’t follow suit.

 

As Sam stepped into the building, he was greeted by his mother’s smiling face. He should have known that she wanted to be the first face that he saw upon entering the building. 

 

“Well if it isn’t my son. It’s about time you got here Samuel.”

 

“I had a bit of a misstep, but I’m here.” He gave his mother a kiss on the cheek. “How are you doing? Came to wish me good luck on my first day, or did you come here to micromanage me?” Sam was teasing a bit, but there was some truth to his words.

 

Mary smiled at her oldest child, his words couldn’t have been further from the truth, she knew he could handle everything and more that was thrown at him, and yet, she still wanted to make sure that he and Mercedes got off on the right foot.

 

“Micro manage? Me? That doesn’t sound like me at all.” She said with a grin, teasing her son right back. “But I do want to know if you are ready, it's a big deal you taking over for me. I let a few people know but most expect it to happen gradually, not all at once like this.”

 

Sam chuckled and shook his head. He knew his mother all too well. “You worry too much. Everything will go fine as long as the employees do what they were hired for. And if they have trouble adjusting, well everyone’s replaceable.” Sam knew his parents were softies but times had changed and sometimes you need to play a little hard ball.

 

Mary cocked her head to the side softly and shook it. Her son was a force, like his father, and that could be both a good or bad thing. “Samuel, your father and I have run this company for many years now, people may be replaceable but that doesn’t mean they should be. You shouldn’t come in her planning on making those kinds of changes right away.” She stopped but then continued. “However, should ever you feel the need to replace the entire staff, there is one person it is irreplaceable. My assistant Mercedes, she has been one of the biggest reasons we have made it so far so fast.” 

 

Sam rolled his eyes and turned from his mother moving to the elevator knowing without a doubt that she would be following him. “I’m not going to be firing people, but you should know that I don’t play favorites. If your assistant is good at her job, then she has nothing to worry about.”

 

The elevator dinged, and opened, and Sam held the doors for his mother before joining her.

 

“Anyway, you’re acting like I’m going to run the company into the ground. I know what I’m doing. I was born for this.”

 

Mary nodded joining Sam in the elevator. “That you were, your father knew you were going to be here one day from the moment you were born. He had this dream for you, we both did, it just feels better that it’s your choice.”

 

As the elevator made it to the top floor, the doors opened allowing them to exit. 

 

“You know, a lot of people wouldn’t want to follow in their parent’s footsteps, I am not sure  your siblings have the heart for it, but you, yes, we always saw you here.” She said stepping into the office. “Of Course I didn’t know I would be stepping down at the time, but with this new project, I want to give it my full attention. And I am glad to know that you will be taking it into your capable hands.”

 

Sam stepped off the elevator and followed his mother to the office. He knew she was going to take stepping down hard, but in all honesty, Sam doesn’t feel bad. She had put everything she had into Evans Corp, so had his father. They both deserved to sit back and relax and let their children take over things.

 

As Sam passed by the assistant’s desk, he couldn’t help but notice her absence. “For someone who is such an asset to this company, you would think she would be on time.” 

 

He unlocked his office and set his briefcase down to open it. He took out some things to put on his desk including a nice picture of him and Quinn when they went to Fiji last year.

 

“Is she gracing us with her presence at all today?”

 

Mary looked around the office and knew Mercedes must have been running late. She had reminded her to try and make it in on time. But given how most mornings, Mary knew Miles and Madison would and could be a handful, she wasn’t surprised. 

 

“Don’t be like that Samuel, Mercedes is a hard worker and she earns everything she has here, but there are some times that she does run a little late, it’s not cause for concern trust me.”

 

Sam wanted to know when it was ever okay to be late on someone else's dime. This isn’t his first run at having people under him. He knows that if you let them, employees will take advantage of your kindness.

 

“It’s a cause for concern when you number one employee can’t be trusted to get to work on time. First impressions are everything.” Sam looked at his mother in the eye before continuing. “You’re the one who taught me that.” 

 

Sam knew he was being a little unreasonable, but Tardiness isn’t something he tolerates. No matter who it is. 

 

Making her way into the office building, she waved at the security guard who nodded her pass, before she could dig out her badge. Everyone in the company knew who she was, mainly because whenever there was trouble, Mary Evans came in with Mercedes on their side and they fixed it together. As she entered the elevator and made her way up to the top floor, she quickly exited and went to her desk. The office building had four floors, all different levels of the company. The top floor housed the CEO’s, COO’s and all Upper Management. Where Mercedes worked it was basically an office inside and office. 

 

Logging into her computer screen, she pulled up the files she needed and printed them out, as she put them in the respective folders. Grabbing Mary’s coffee, she picked up the files and walked towards the door, knocking before walking in. 

 

“Good Morning Ma’am, I have those files I proofed last night and your morning coffee.”

 

Walking further into the office she smiled at her boss but stood frozen as brown eyes met the familiar pair of green eyes staring back at her.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In this chapter, we see Sam and Mercedes interact in the office setting, we see some of Sam's relationship with Quinn, and see how Mercedes and her siblings. We show more of their different living situations.

* * *

 

Grabbing Mary’s coffee, she picked up the files and walked towards the door, knocking before walking in.

“Good Morning Ma’am, I have those files I proofed last night and your morning coffee.”

Walking further into the office she smiled at her boss but stood frozen as brown eyes met the familiar pair of green eyes staring back at her.

Mary beamed as Mercedes walked in. “Mercedes, dear, great you are here.” She moved closer to the younger woman and embraced her as she turned to Sam.

“Samuel this is Mercedes Jones the best thing, well other than your father and I, and you, to grace this place. Mercedes.” She said turning to a nervous face, “This is my son Samuel Evans, I know he was supposed to take over next week but due to scheduling conflict of mines, he is here now.”

Sam’s eyes zoomed in on Mercedes and couldn’t believe it was the little spit-fire from this morning. He cooled his expression before the smile that was just under the surface could appear. His eyes looked her over from head to toe before he even realized he was doing it.

“Oh, we met mother. This is the little ticking time bomb that didn’t watch where she was going and ended up spilling her coffee.” He said to his mother without taking his eyes off Mercedes. “So you’re my new assistant huh?” He glanced at his mother before glancing back to Mercedes. “Do you make it a habit of being late, or is this a one time thing? Because if so, them maybe you should leave your house earlier in case you have anymore coffee accidents.”

Mercedes stared at the man in front of her who Mary introduced as her son. Mercedes was about to say something, but Sam beat her to it. She laughed bitterly shaking her head.

“This has got to be a joke. First of all, had you not bumped into me, scolding me with burns from the hot drink spilling all over myself and my clothes, I would have been on time.” Her words were full of attitude and bitterness, though she smiled as the words dripped from her lips. “I may come in at nine on most days, but I can assure you, you don’t have to worry about the work, It will get done, and there will be no complaints.”

Mary didn’t mean to be amused by the scene in front of her, she had a feeling the two would be like oil and water, only because as well as she knew her son, knowing his tendency to be very stubborn, she had noticed that trait in Mercedes as well. Instead of interjecting, she stood by listening to them bicker.

“On most days?” Sam didn’t like the sound of that at all. What was so hard getting here at nine? But Sam didn’t say that. He cut his eyes to his mother before looking back at Mercedes and moving in front of his desk leaning on it, arms crossed.

“Look, we got off on the wrong foot and this morning wasn’t the best. My mother seems to think highly of you. So just do your job, get here on time, and we won’t have a problem. Now can you make me a cup of coffee?”

Mercedes wanted to say something more, but even she knew that talking back to the boss was not going to help her and she could end up losing her job. This was the best job that she had ever had, so if dealing with her new boss, was what she had to do to get by, they that is what she would do. Fighting the urge to roll her eyes, she nodded. “Yes, sir, how would you like it?”

Sam smiled before telling her, “Just make it black. I’ll bring in my preferred coffee choice tomorrow.”

Mercedes chewed the inside of her lip, this was not going to be easy, there was just something about him that, she didn’t even know what it was that it did to her, but she didn’t like it. Turning to Mary she held out the cup of coffee.

“Here is yours, I guess for the last time.” She said sadly, really realizing that Mary would be gone now for the most part. “And I will get your Coffee now, Mr. Evans.” She said as she glanced at him once more before leaving the room.

Mary smirked taking a sip of her drink. “Well, now that was very entertaining. I don’t think I have ever enjoyed two people meeting, as much as I enjoyed that.”

Before Sam could catch himself, he was staring at Mercedes ass as she walked out of his office. His mother’s voice quickly brought him to his senses.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” And he decided to just drop it there. He didn’t need his mother getting any crazy ideas. “Anyway, shouldn’t you be on your way enjoying your new found freedom and not harassing your son at his new job?”

Mary watched her son’s reaction, she didn’t know what would happen in the future but she knew that Mercedes would keep Sam on his toes, and maybe even teach him to be a little bit more compassionate to the people he worked with, she was even sure Mercedes would gain something from him as well.

“Hey I am enjoying it, a lot. I am thinking of taking the rest of the morning just sitting here watching you two.” She looked at her watch. “But unfortunately I have to meet up with your father so this is where I leave you.”

Moving closer to her son, Mary linked her arms with his and kissed his cheek. “I love you, can’t wait to do dinner with you and Quinn next week and please be nice to my staff, well your staff.”

She moved away from him as Mercedes walked back into the room. Moving to the younger woman, Mary hugged her briefly, before the two shared a hip bump. “I am going to miss you, please if you need anything, anything you call me. And keep sending me pictures of the twins, I just can’t get enough of them.”

Mercedes nodded and with that, Mary walked out the room. Setting down Sam’s coffee she smoothed down her dress looking at him. “Will there be anything else?”

Sam walked around his desk and sat down before responding. “I want to have a staff meeting in an hour with everyone. Is that doable?” Sam knew that most meetings he would conduct would just be with department heads, but Sam wanted every  employee at this one so he can tell them what is expected and just see everyone. “It won’t be long, maybe twenty minutes.”.

Mercedes nodded. “Yes it’s doable, I can get the email out now and make sure everyone meets you in the main conference room.” Going to Sam’s desk she grabbed a pen and sticky note. Jotting down the meeting time she looked back up to him. “Will there be anything else?”

“Well that was easy. But no, nothing else. Just get that done and meet me in the conference room in an hour. I need to leave early today to make a reservation, so today will be more of a laid back kinda day.”

Mercedes just nodded as there was nothing else she could say. Turning to leave Sam’s office she went to her desk and sent out the memo to everyone, making sure that no one was left out in meeting their new boss. What everyone thought of him? She was eager to see.

* * *

As the day winded down, Mercedes checked the time, Kurt picked up the dry cleaned uniform and so Madison was squared away, but she would never forgive Mercedes if she missed the cheers. The meeting with the new boss wasn’t as bad as she thought, Sam seemed a bit of a hard ass, like someone who was just looking to make a name of himself and establish he was numero uno around here. He should have known that wouldn’t fly in the office but he is like every man in his position, if they have power, they will wield it.

As Sam was packing up to leave for the day, he checked his phone, and sure enough he had three missed calls and four text messages from Quinn. He knew he was running late, and that if he didn’t get there fast, she would blow a gasket. After locking up his office, he sent Quinn a quick text to let her know that he was on his way, and he headed out to the garage to his car.

His story with Quinn was one he’s sure people have heard a million times. It wasn’t an epic love story. It was basically an understanding. People of status belong with other people of status. And Sam wasn’t really complaining. Quinn was every definition of gorgeous. Blonde hair, green eyes with a hint of hazel, tall, smart, and classy. She was the type of women that everyone either wanted to be with, or wanted to be, and he was the lucky man that would spend the rest of his life with her. Well at least that was the plan.

Sam pulled up in front of the Biltmore Hotel, and took a breath before getting out and giving his keys to the valet. Their reservation was at Palme d’Or, one of the best restaurants in the city. He didn’t know why she insisted that they go out to dinner tonight, but when it came to Quinn, he always caved. He gave his name to the maître d' and was taken to a table where a slightly pissed off Quinn was waiting, a scowl etched on her beautiful face.

“Hey gorgeous.” He gave her a kiss on the cheek before sitting down in front of her. “You are far too beautiful to have a  scowl on your face.”

Quinn should have been surprised when Sam strutted into the restaurant almost forty-five minutes late, but she wasn’t, when it came to work, Sam lost track of time, this was one of the few things, on a short list of things, that she planned on changing about Sam. Her mother said it best, the myth about not being able to change a man was simply untrue. With the right motivation, any man can be trained. And Quinn with all of her assets had the right motivation.

She loved mostly everything about Sam, he was one of the few people who she felt actually matched her level and speed of life. He was everything she ever wanted in a man, successful, handsome and good to her. She was under no notion that they shared a love like those in the romance novel, Sam hadn’t swept her off of feet, but that didn’t mean the love she felt for him wasn’t real. She loved him, loved what they could be together and couldn’t wait for the future.

“Samuel I swear, I am going to start telling you times an hour earlier than the event just so you will make it on time.” She stood, kissing him softly before returning to her seat. “This dinner is for you after all, how was your first day?”

“Sorry Quinnie Poo.” Sam knew using that name almost always got her to not be mad at him. And when he saw the beautiful smile grace her face with a fond shake of her head, he considered that a win. “It was my first day and I was getting acquainted with the employees, and lost track of time. But I do thank you for this great dinner.” He smiled at the waiter when he came with the wine list. “Thanks, but we really don’t need--”

“Thank you, just give us a minute to decide which wine we will be ordering.” Quinn interrupted. The waiter nodded his head and waited. “Honestly Sam, this is a celebration, and we are going all out.” She turned back to the waiter, and gave her order. “Give us the most expensive wine on the list.”

“Babe, you know I’m not much of a wine drinker. A scotch will do just fine.”

“What part of celebration don’t you understand? You can have a scotch anytime. I can’t believe you’re giving me shit when I’m doing all of this for you.”

Sam was beginning to get annoyed. “I’m not giving you shit Quinn. If this is for me, then I should be able to order what I like.”

“Can we just classy it up a bit? Just for tonight? And then you can go back to your beer and scotch.” She turned to waite, who for whatever reason was still standing there. Sam wanted to know why? Most waiters take the order and go, then come back an hour later. Sam figured that he knew that they would change their minds again. Quinn’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

“Sorry about that. Give us your most expensive wine…” Something caught Quinn’s attention. “Wait, give us the 6 course tasting menu, and you can pair the wine with that.”

“Yes Madam. What would you like your first course to be.”

As Quinn continued to order, Sam began checking emails, and text messages. He loved her, but sometimes when she gets like this, it’s hard to take. He didn’t know when he got to a point that he was letting her order for him. He does appreciate the whole gesture, so he guesses he should be thankful. But this is a bit much.

As he was scrolling his text message, he sees one from his mother asking about his first day and his opinion on Mercedes. He chuckled at his mother knowing she thought that he would fire her favorite assistant, and told her that the little spit-fire was kinda impressive. And she was. But he doubts that would be a daily thing, because everyone is on their best behavior the first day.

“What’s so funny?” Sam noticed that the waiter left and Quinn was looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

“Oh nothing. Just talks with my mother.”

“Oh, Okay. Is she still up for dinner next week.”

“That’s what she said.”

“Hopefully you’ll be on time for that.”

“Quinn, get off my back. I’m running a company now. I can’t just up and leave when I get ready.”

“Babe, you’re the CEO. Nobody is higher than you. You can up and leave whenever you want. This is why you have department heads and assistants. To pick up the slack when you can’t.” Quinn loved him, but sometimes he needed a push and she was that for him. She was the person to keep him focused. And she was damn good at that.

Sam knew she was right. He was the boss and could leave when he wanted. But he was also a perfectionist, and felt that no one could do something the way he could, so why let them. His father always told him, if you need something done right, do it yourself. But of course he can’t say that to Quinn because he didn’t want another argument.

“You’re right Quinn. I’m the boss, I can do what I please.” Thankfully their first course was brought to them and Sam was able to eat and nod for the rest of their conversations like he always does. It’s not that he doesn’t enjoy talking to Quinn, he does, they have similar personalities and get along great. He just doesn’t want to make things more tense and stressful tonight.

* * *

Mercedes was tired by the time she made it out of the office, but there was no time for rest. She raced over to the field just in time for the second quarter of the peewee game to begin. Moving to the bleachers, she smiled seeing Miles sitting next Brittany and Kurt, as the girl's started cheering on the boys. Moving to sit next to him, she cheered loudly, so that Madison would know she was there.

Kissing her little brother on the top of his head, she leaned over to hug Brittany then Kurt. Kurt smiled at her.

“How are you feeling after this morning?”

Mercedes laughed shaking her head. “Well, let’s see I was late getting to work to meet the new boss because of that jerk. I get to work and because the universe loves me so much, they made him my boss.” she said, still annoyed at the situation.

“Wait- The universe is your boss? I thought Mary was?” Brittany said looking at Mercedes. Mercedes shook her head smiling softly. “No this guy spilled coffee all over me this morning at Kurt’s shop and when I got to work, he is Mary’s son, my new boss.”

“That is wild, did he at least apologize?”

Mercedes laughed bitterly. “As if, he actually went on about me being late, even after he knew he caused it.”

Sitting back she sighed looking down to Miles, who instead of enjoying the game had his nose in his latest Captain Underpants book.

“Hey MJ how was school.”

“It was fine, Mr. Clark made a mistake on the whiteboard and I had to correct him. Which got me sent to the principal's office again, but she was okay with it.”

Mercedes laughed shaking her head. “Miles we had this talk, you can’t go embarrassing the teachers.”

“It’s not my fault he wrote the equation wrong. I mean you send me to this mediocre school with less than average teachers, it was bound to happen.”

Mercedes sighed, Mary had offered to get them into the school her children attend but Mercedes couldn’t afford it even with the scholarships they were offered. But a better school was needed, because she could see just how bored Miles truly was with his education.

“Duly noted MJ, how is Maddie doing?”

“She’s fine I suppose, though to be fair, cheering isn't’ really an Olympic sport.”

Mercedes shook her head looking over at her little sister, Miles may have gotten their father’s brain, but Maddie certainly got her charisma and charm from their mother. It was like she was raising mini me’s of their parents.

The rest of the game went on without a hitch and even though she was tired, she and the twins joined Santana, Brittany and Kurt for dinner out at Cracker Barrel. One of the kids favorite places to go. On nights where neither kid had anything to do, they stayed in and Mercedes made dinner, but when they were out they nearly always went out with the gang.

Santana and Brittany met Mercedes and Kurt in middle school, and they were inseparable since then. The girl's even had a girl group in high school called “TroubleTones”. It was one of those things that they just enjoyed doing, so they sang at every talent show and even the Pep Rallies. While Mercedes and Santana slayed, musically, Brittany always came up with the best dance routines. Its why she was encouraged to open her own studio.

She may have been a free spirit, but it seemed that Santana got her in ways others didn’t. Santana, while coaching PeeWee girl's Cheer-leading, handled the finances of P & L Dance Studio, Brittany handled the dances. Girls and boys from all over the city came in to learn from Brittany and her staff. They entered competitions and soon she was known as one of the best.

Though when the four of them graduated the goal was to go to college, have fun and worry about the rest later. One semester, that's all Mercedes had. And she had to pull away from the life she truly wanted. Kurt and Santana went on to earn Business degree as Brittany honed her dancing skills. They helped out as much as they could, offering comfort, places to stay and much needed stress relievers to help Mercedes deal with her loss, and help raising the kids..

As she listened to Miles and Kurt talk comics, Kurt as always just nodded like he knew what the boy was talking about. Brittany and Maddie were talking about their upcoming competition. Her mind was off somewhere when she felt a nudge from Santana.

“Girl where were you just now? Cause you have been staring into space for about five minutes now.”

Mercedes shook off her thoughts. “Just thinking. Not looking forward to tomorrow.”

Santana laughed. “What I don’t get is, how did you not know you were cussing out your bosses son, aka your boss?”

Mercedes laughed. “Well Sam has been away at school ever since I started at the company and the pictures I saw on her desk, it didn’t dawn on me it was the same person. Plus, hot coffee down my new blouse and all I saw was red.”

“So now that you know...what are you gonna do, cause you know I may have calmed in my ways but the truth is, i can pull out Auntie Snix in a minute.”

“Santana the last time you did that, it involved a police chase, stolen identity and me explaining to the Port Authority you didn’t actually mean it when you said you would….what was it?”

She smile proudly. “I would cut off his junk and mail it to his grandmother.”

Mercedes shook her head. “To be fair it sounded better in Spanish.”

Santana laughed. “Right?”

The evening winded down and Mercedes made her way home with the twins. Their nightly routine pretty much the same as always. Get their things together for the next day, catch up on one of their shows together and tuck both kids into bed, before she headed to her own. Her life was set in its way it seemed, for the long haul. The last ten years made her realize that as much as she loved her freedom, as much as she wanted more out of life, this was who she was now. A mother to her siblings. She couldn’t afford to be anything else, she didn’t think it was fair to have a relationship, talk about kids or marriage, anything that could make the twins feel unwanted. Once they were in college, maybe she could focus on her own life, until then, this was who she was and it was okay with her.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's another chapter from Tori and I. I hope you guys enjoy it and comments and criticism are always appreciated.

* * *

It has been two weeks since Mary left and her new boss had completely take over the company, it was a hard adjustment for Mercedes, she felt underused and unappreciated by him. But instead of letting that keep her down, Mercedes just waited until there was a chance for her to prove to everyone just how useful she could be. Some of the staff were not impressed by Sam’s forceful actions, while he didn’t fire anyone yet, he did demote two department heads in order to bring in two of his own guys.

From what Mercedes could tell, Blaine Anderson and Mike Chang were not that bad to be around or to look at for that matter, she thoroughly enjoyed the men's use of their work out facility. One of the perks for the employees, who seemed to live there, was an onsite gym. It allowed everyone to work out even if they were stuck at work. And she could admit that the few times she went to the gym during her lunch break, she was pleasantly entertained by the sight of Sam and his friends working out, punching bags, lifting weights among other things. While she didn’t leer at them like most of the women and some of the men did, she was caught a few times staring. They all had really great bodies. 

Shaking off her thought, Mercedes would always leave the gym more turned on than expected, which basically told her it was about that time again for her to find someone to hang out with. While she didn’t date, per say, she did enjoy the company of a man from time to time, those who were okay with just having fun and not wanting a commitment. 

Today, Mercedes was tempted to take her frustrations out on the punching bag, however, her not knowing anything about boxing, kept her squarely in the treadmill/bike camp. Today was the bike. Throwing her hair up into a messy bun she changed into her purple and black body hugging workout capri’s and just as tight top and made her way to the bike. Mercedes had never been ashamed of the body God gave her, and as she got older, she was really able to work on herself to the point of having more curves than a winding road. 

Today her mind was on the sleepover she was having this weekend for the twins, so as she pedaled her mind was on what she had to do after work. Having twins and making sure that events like sleepovers went over well with both the guys and girl's was hard, considering they all wanted different things. So after one particularly bad sleep over, where the girl's painted they guys face with makeup and the guys filled their water guns with various things including juice, tomato soup and balloons with honey, which was really just impressive somewhat. It was then that she realized that the best thing to do was to separate them. 

Typically what she wanted to do was let the guys have the outside and the girl's had the inside. Since the yard wasn’t that big and the boys have outgrown the tree house, she decided to renovate the garage and Kurt had an in with one of the guys who helped with the renovation of his coffee shop. The guy came over and after talking with Miles, they enclosed the garage and made it their boys only club. Adding carpet and windows, it converted rather nicely. It had working outlets so they could watch movies in recliners, fridge full of drinks and snacks, and room to do things guys did at sleepovers. Including the sleeping bags and pillows or if they wanted to be more civil they could use the air mattresses. 

To make sure Madison didn’t feel left out, Mercedes converted the den into her own little girl space. On one side of the room she had a few recliners and a love seat for movies, mani/pedis and anything else fun they wanted to do, and on the other side there was a line of pink air mattresses with lace tents that gave the feel of camping but not actually doing it. Both rooms tailored to the twins. She may not be able to give them everything but what she could do, she tended to go overboard.

Her thoughts were interrupted by the phone ringing, looking at the time she hadn’t realized 10 minutes had gone by. Grabbing her file, she headed to Sam’s office knocking on the door and waiting for him to answer.

* * *

 

“We got a new contract with that old museum on fifth. They want to restore it. Which probably means to do all repairs and get new lighting. Also check for mold and things like that.” Sam paused as he read more of the files from this week. “So, Mike, you need to send out a construction crew and figure out what needs to be done. But I want you to be thorough. The building is like 40 years old, so expect the unexpected.” 

“Yea, that won’t be a problem.” Mike said looking over the paperwork for the project.

“And Blaine, I need you to work the numbers and budget once we get a full report on what needs to be done and what the owners want to do.”

After two full weeks of running this company, Sam was settled into the position. He may have stepped on a few toes, but his father always told him that if everyone is happy, then you’re not  doing your job. You just can’t please everyone and sometimes you have to make the tough decisions. So demoting some people to make room for some, was just something he had to do. He needed to be surrounded by people he trust and would never steer him wrong. Mike and Blaine were those people and Sam has no plans on replacing anyone else, so he hopes that the morale of the company would go up. 

He met Mike in college. They rushed the same fraternity, and just bonded. Mike was one of the only people he clicked with. They did everything together, from partying, playing football, double dates, and pranks. Their friendship stayed in tack. Sam was the one who introduced Mike to his wife Jane. He met Jane through Quinn at her Soror’s party, and got to know her. Mike had just had a bad break up and he thought Jane would be a good distraction. He had no idea that they would fall in love and get married right after graduation. And Sam couldn’t see a better match. Mike didn’t do the whole “only marry an asian” his parents tried to push on him. He went with his heart and he has never seen him so happy. But Sam knows that Mike is the exception and just because he is happy, doesn’t mean that it would turn out that way for Sam if he decided to just do what he wanted.

Blaine was a different story. Blaine and Sam were basically friends since the womb. Their mothers grew up together and were the best of friends. Their families did everything together. Sam was the first one Blaine came out to when they were freshmans in high school, and that made their friendship grow stronger. When Blaine came out to his parents in college, they disowned him and stopped paying for his school. Sam decided to use some of his trust to pay for Blaine’s education unbeknownst to his parents. And when Sebastian, Blaine’s ex broke up with him in the most humiliating way, Sam was right there. They were thick as thieves and Sam loved Blaine as a brother. These two got their position because they were who Sam trusted the most.

His mother suggested giving the two employees he demoted another position, but Sam doesn’t have time to think about that. And besides, he may have demoted their title, but he let their pay and benefits stay the same. So he really didn’t see the big deal.

“Anyway, enough business. How is the soon to be Mrs?” Blaine asked, making Sam get out of his head and focus on the conversation in front of him. Sam was always amazed at how Blaine could change the topic from work to personal with the snap of a finger. But he guesses that’s how a chameleon works. And that is what he considered Blaine.

“Quinn is fine. We’re supposed to be having a laid back weekend.”

“Oh, Quinn didn’t tell you?” Mike asked, his gaze laced with confusion. We are going to Palm Springs this weekend. The four of us. She said she cleared your schedule so we can enjoy the weekend which includes Monday apparently.”

Sam could feel some form of headache coming on as he checked his phone for any messages from her. But of course there was none. “Doesn’t Jane have to work? And don’t you have to work? Is Jane okay with this?” Sam only asked because when it came to Jane and Quinn, Jane was more of the responsible one. And can normally talk Quinn out of making rash decisions.

“Jane is off, and so am I… Well I took off. My assistant has my numbers in case she needs me for any reason.”

“But I just started being CEO, how does it look for me taking off a day already?”

“Sam, just say you have business to conduct elsewhere. It’s not far fetched at all.” Blaine chimed in. “You need this little break. A breather. Just go and unwind.”

“Yea, and plus isn’t this you and Quinn’s anniversary? You don’t want to upset her. You two have a good thing going on. Jane and I always used to talk about how we wanted to be like you two.”

Sam tuned out Mike for a minute to check his calendar. Sure enough, their four year anniversary was tomorrow. How did he forget?

“When are you going to pop the question anyway. We have a pool going on, and I’m losing money.” Blaine was shameless.

That was the question on everyone’s mind. When are Sam and Quinn tying the knot. It would be the wedding of the decade. He knows he will have to do it soon because Quinn is already talking about her aging and not wanting to be an old bride. He already has the ring, he is just looking for the right time, place, and words. Things take time, granted they have been dating for four years now. He should be excited about the prospect of marrying her, so he has no idea why he is stalling. He is starting to hate family dinners though. Everyone is just talking about marriage and engagements and Sam just wants to breathe. But he guesses he shouldn’t be surprised. This is the kind of life that Sam should be used to. When every aspect of your life is determine by image and money, and not by passion.

But to the outside world, Sam has no reason to not love his life, so he will just be grateful for what he has and make the best of if it. Who else can say that at thirty, they were running a multi-million dollar company, dating a beautiful woman that any man would be lucky to have, and is part of one of the most wealthiest family in the city? From the outside looking in, he has won the lottery. 

Hearing the knock on the door, brought him back to reality. “Come in.” Sam didn’t have to look up to know that it was Mercedes that walked in. Being his assistant, everyone had to go through her in order to come near his office. “What can I do for you Mercedes?”

Mercedes walked into the office trying to act as if she wasn’t slightly eavesdropping, heels clicking against the Marble floor. Since it was friday, she dressed down. Casual Friday was implemented a year ago and so she often wore Jeans or casual pants with heels. Today was no different and she wore a pair of hip hugging dark blue jeans, and a silk red top, the black heels added to the look giving her height and a stylish edge. Her hair fell over her shoulders in waves and the natural makeup pulled her look together. Walking towards Sam smiled sweetly.

“Mr. Anderson, Mr. Chang, good to see you again. Mr. Evans I have the completed file for the project here, Artie said that he will get you the projection numbers by the end of the day. Can I get you gentlemen something to drink?” She asked placing the files on the desk.

“Thank you Mercedes. Just put it on that pile right there and I’ll get to it when I can.” He honestly has no time for a weekend get away because he has deadlines approaching, and meetings to prepare for. 

Both Mike and Blaine declined the offer for any drinks.

“Mercedes, can I ask you a question?” Sam cut his eyes to Blaine wondering what the hell he was up to. “Are you dating anyone?”

Sam’s eyes traveled to Mercedes and he couldn’t stop them from trailing up her body. She looked really good and she was only jeans and a shirt, but you couldn’t deny her natural beauty. Since working here, he always took notice of Mercedes and her attire and always thought that she had the business sexy look down. But before he got caught, Sam looked back down to the work in front of him just so his eyes had something to look at.

Mercedes nodded at their answers, them not wanting anything to drink. Placing her hair behind her ears, she was about to turn away when Blaine stopped her. She gave him her attention, but frowned slightly at the question her guard going up immediately. “Ummm no sir I am not. Why do you ask?” 

“Well first off, you looked far too beautiful to be single. But let’s say you were dating someone that had a high stressed job, don’t you think they deserve a little r&r every once in awhile?”

The guard that went up has slightly gone down at the compliment. She smiled softly. “Oh, well thank you Mr. Anderson, but uh Mj and Maddie keep me to busy for that. But yes, its important to enjoy time off and the little things in life. Its too short to work nonstop with no fun. When Mary was here I made sure she was out the door every Friday by two pm, she and Dwight had a standing date. Everyone needs to unwind sometimes.” She looked at Sam. “Oh that's my thoughts at least.” She added softly.

“Enough with the Mr. Anderson. I am not that prick. Blaine is just fine. Are Maddie and Mj your kids?”

“Blaine, enough.” Sam turned to Mercedes. “You don’t have to answer any of his questions Mercedes.

“What? I’m just getting to know your assistant who by the way made an excellent point.” Blaine turned back to Mercedes. “So you were able to get Mary out by two every Friday? Hmm, maybe you should do that with Sam. He definitely needs it.”

Mercedes looked over to Sam as he spoke before glancing back at Blaine. “Its okay, I don’t mind answering, and okay Blaine, no they aren’t my children, they are my younger siblings and twins. And yes, she wanted to make sure that she and her husband enjoyed their time, plus sometimes Stacy had dance or Stevie had something and she wanted to make sure she was there. If Mr. Evans would like my help I don’t mind. From what I can tell he is such a hard worker and gives just as much or more than he expects from his staff. Great Bosses like that need time off.” She said looking back over to Sam, they may have gotten off on the wrong foot, but she respected how hard Sam worked.

Sam blushed a bit at her words. He was sure she thought of him as a hard ass who had no fun. Blaine on the other hand was enjoying being right and he was sure going to throw it in Sam’s face later. “Hard worker you say? Well Mercedes has spoken, and we are in agreement that you should take off and come back Tuesday.”

“Can we get back to work and not discuss my weekend plans please.”

“Sam, lighten up. It’s Friday. You know, TGIF. Why are you so moody?” Sam sighed at Mike and ran his hands over his face.

“Mercedes, is there a way you can clear my schedule for me on Monday?”

Mercedes watched the guys banter and smiled thinking back to her and her friends. “Sure thing Mr. Evans I can make sure that your meetings are moved from Monday to Tuesday.” She was about to go take care of his schedule but stopped and turned back towards the men. “How long have you guys known each other? I don’t mean to pry, I only ask because my trio and I sound exactly like you three when we get together.”

“I’ve known Sam since I was born literally. Like he was born three days before me and our mothers were best friends. People say they planned on getting pregnant together. Of course my mom didn’t know her son would turn out to be gay, but that’s besides the point.”

Mike chuckled at Blaine’s dramatics before answering. “I met both Blaine and Sam in college. Sam and I rushed the same fraternity and been thick as thieves ever since.”

“I’m still trying to figure out if that is a blessing or curse.” Sam jokes.

“Blessing or curse? I’m the best thing that has ever happen to you. Don’t deny it.” Blaine winked at Sam before turning back to Mercedes.

“If your friends are like us, we should definitely hang out one of these days. Imagine the fun.”

Mercedes glanced at Blaine and shook her head, she could tell the way he said what he did, his mom didn’t support him. She wanted to say something but didn’t feel like it was her place. So she just kept her comment to herself, not saying anything about it. Smiling she nodded. “Trust me friends like that are the best. Kurt and I met in the first grade. He gave me his pudding cup and we just became friends. Santana and Britt, they are the other two and married, we met in Middle school.” She sucked her lips into her mouth realizing that she was talking a lot. “I am sorry, you guys didn’t want to know all that about me. Sometimes I just talk a lot.”

“Oh, don’t be sorry. We’re new here and getting to know our co-workers is a must.” Mike chimed in.

“Mercedes hang back for a bit.” Sam turned to Mike and Blaine. “I have work to do if I want to get out of here at a decent time. So if you two don’t mind getting back to work and to stop harassing my assistant, I would greatly appreciate it.”

“Okay man. But the plane is leaving at eight. So don’t be late.” Mike knew how Quinn got when Sam was late and he was trying to help him out.

“I’ll be fine.”

“Okay. We get the hint. Enjoy your day Mercedes.” Blaine smiled at them both before heading out.

Mercedes watched Sam’s friends leave started to leave and she moved over to the door, she just couldn’t let him go without speaking up, it was her own curse and she knew it. She went to the door, opening it for them, doing her part as Sam’s assistant but when Blaine walked by, she turned towards him lowering her voice slightly. “Mr And- I mean Blaine, I just-,” She swallowed knowing she might be crossing a line. “I just wanted to say that I’m sorry about what happened with your mom. My best friends came out to me before their parents and so I know how hard that must have been for you, and it may not be any of my business, but anyone who doesn’t accept you for who you are, doesn’t deserve to be in your life.” She gave him a soft smile before moving over to Sam, she probably should have kept her comment to herself but that wasn’t her style.

As the two of them left, Sam let out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. He loved his friends but sometimes they needed to stop meddling. 

Mercedes lifted her notepad and pen. “Okay I am ready when you are.” She said to Sam, curious as to why he wanted her to stay.

“Okay, so I need to get off early because I just found out that I’m also dropping Stevie and Stacy at your house and now I have a flight to catch at eight. Even though is a private plane. So I need to do as much as I can in the next four hours. So clear any meetings and push them back to Tuesday. Order lunch from that new place that opened last week, and hold all of my calls unless it’s from my siblings. That includes Quinn, and my parents.” Sam loved them, but he didn’t  need to be any more stressed out then he already was. “Any questions?”

Listening to Sam’s words she glanced up at him, slightly confused. “Wait- you are coming to my home? Why didn’t your mom just ask me to pick them up? She knows I don’t mind.” Mercedes wasn’t sure how she felt about Sam knowing where she lived. It wasn’t anything against him, it was just weird. It seemed, she didn’t know but it didn’t seem like something she didn’t want him to know about her. 

“They were spending the day with Quinn, so she figured that we could drop them off I guess. I’m not sure. But I got the text from Quinn when Blaine and Mike were budding in your business. Is that a problem?”

Mercedes shook her head no. “Um No sir that shouldn’t be a problem at all. The twins are excited to see Stevie and Stacy again it has been about 2 weeks.” Shaking off her negative thoughts she moved closer to his desk. “Did you want the same order as yesterday? Or did you want to try something new?” She said opening her phone app so she could start his order.

“The same order is fine. Though this time make sure my steak is medium well and not well done. Oh and order yourself something because I don’t think I will be able to let you go out for your lunch today.”

“Oh okay Mr. Evans got it and I will make sure one of the interns pick this up ASAP. Will there be anything else? Do you need any help with the proposal? I helped your mom put it together so I am familiar with it.”

Sam rolled his eyes. Everyone wanted to feel more important than they are. “Unless you have two master's degrees, and your own office, than no you can’t help me. Just do the task I assigned you and we’ll be good.” Sam had another thought. “Actually, you can go and get the Adams account, and Markle account, and then man the desk. Can you handle that?”

Mercedes stared at him for a moment, “Wow, okay.” She stood tall moving towards the door. Just when she thought he might have been a decent guy, he had to go back and act like an ass. He continued speaking and she chewed her bottom lip to stop herself from speaking. It was intern work, but she knew this was Sam’s way of putting her back in her place. “Right away Mr. Evans.” She said bitterly as she exited his office. As much as she wanted to put him in his place. She needed this job and didn’t trust that Sam wouldn’t fire her.

* * *

 

“Quinn! What’s taking you so long?” Sam figured since she was a stickler for time, that she would have been ready to go as soon as he came home. But nope she isn’t. Normally he wouldn’t mind, but he had to go and drop off Stevie and Stacy and he didn’t want to drop them off late. Plus he was tired and was looking forward to unwinding a bit. 

“Sam, we were supposed to be there a half an hour ago. What’s taking her so long?” Stevie was just as impatient as Sam.

“Relax. Women take longer because we have to make up our face. Cut Quinn some slack. How else do you think she looks like a supermodel all the time?”

Sam didn’t know if Stacy was serious or being sarcastic. He figured the former because Stacy loved Quinn like a sister and the two got along really well. “Stevie, we will leave soon, just be a bit patient.” 

Before he could go upstairs to see what was going on with her, Quinn finally graced them with her presence looking like a vision in her baby blue dress that came right up to her knees and her open toe heels. He hair just curled and lying on her shoulder. She went light with the makeup, but it still made her eyes pop. Even though Sam complained about her tardiness, he does appreciate the end result.

“Okay, I’m ready. After being out all day with your siblings, I had to take a shower and do my makeup and pack our bags. A woman’s job is never done. So are you guys ready?” 

Stevie rolled his eyes and headed out to the car. He didn’t know why girls cared so much about how they looked. Stacy and his mother was the same way. He would never understand girls. Stacy smiled at Quinn and followed her brother out. She was always told that no matter what, you always had to look your best. So she didn’t fault Quinn at all for taking her time.

Sam took the bags that were in the foyer and headed out to their waiting Dark Adriatic Blue  2018 Cadillac Escalade. Sam loved that SUV. It was his baby. He handed the bags over to their driver Fnn and waited for Quinn to get in before handing the piece of paper with Mercedes address to him. “Just plug it in the GPS,” he said before getting into the SUV. He already saw that Stevie and Stacy were messing with the TVs that were in the back of the seats. He hoped they made themselves comfortable because Mercedes place is about a good forty-five minutes away which means that the kids will be an hour and fifteen minutes late.

“Okay Jane text me. They’re at the plane already. How far do we have to go to drop off Stevie and Stacy?”

“It’s about 45 minutes out.”

“Sam, why are you going so far out of the city? Like the air strip is only 15 minutes away.”

“My mom asked and you know I barely tell her no. Besides they were with you all day. It only makes sense for us to take them. Why did you get ready so late?”

“We went shopping and out to eat and time got away from us.”

“Well just sit back and enjoy the car ride. And tell Mike and Jane we will be there as soon as we can.”

Quinn text Jane that they would be there in an hour and half at most. She just said they were running behind schedule.

Sam had closed his eyes and before he knew it, the car stopped.

* * *

 

Mercedes walked around the living room, making sure that everything was set up for the sleepover. On top of Stacy and Stevie, Mercedes had 6 other kids coming over. Maddie was in the den going over the music and movie choices while Mercedes and Miles were filling up water balloons and water guns. The boys had a water fight planned during the night, it started a month ago when they declared war on the neighbors, then each other. Mercedes couldn’t keep up on who the enemy was, she just knew they were going to have fun.

She glanced at the time and sighed, wondering if Sam had forgotten he was supposed to drop off the kids. She placed the last balloon in the bucket, when Santana walked into the room carrying the mani/pedi kit for the girls.

“You know if I wanted to do manual labor I would have stayed my ass at home and put together that bookshelf I am making Kurt’s friend do tomorrow.”

“Tana the kids appreciate you helping out.”

“Please I am only over here because you said your boss was dropping off baby Evans clan and I want to get a good look at him. Kurt said even though he was a complete ass to you, that he was hot.”

Mercedes lifted the bucket, moving it to the back door. “Look Sam is whatever he is but he is also engaged so I don’t look at him like that.”

“Uh huh like I believe that, you and i both know that real eye candy doesn’t matter if it's attached or not. Hell people still check me out and I let them, all this sexy is too good for them not too.”

Mercedes shook her head with a laugh. The house was buzzing with chatter, the girl's running back and forth laughing and the boys outside mapping out their teams. Mercedes threw her hair in a messy bun and walked back into the kitchen with Santana on her heels. She had changed as soon as she got home, putting on a pair of grey yoga pants and an over sized tee that hung over her right shoulder. 

Miles ran into the kitchen. “Mercy are they here yet?”

Mercedes shook her head. “Not yet but soon.”

“Is the pizza ready for us to add our toppings?”

Mercedes smiled. “Almost greedy, I am making them now. I know what Stacy and Stevie want so I can make theirs.”

She took out the dough and began to roll out the pizza. “You go tell everyone to wash their hands so they can make their own pizza.”

* * *

 

“Mr. Evans, we’re at your destination.”

“Thank you Finn.”

“Sam, is this the projects? Why would Stevie and Stacy be having play dates here? It’s so unbecoming.”

“That’s my cue to get out of the car.” Stevie said with a bored expression. Sam got out so he could let the twins out, but before Stevie stepped out, he turned back to Quinn. “Money isn’t everything you know.”

“Says the boy who just had to have a pair of sneakers that cost over three hundred dollars.” Quinn muttered under her breath.

Sam walked them up to the door and rang the doorbell.

Mercedes had turned on the music, allowing it to fill the house, once the kids got settled she and Santana would settle back and drink some wine while they gossiped or talked or just laughed. The doorbell rang and Miles and Madison jumped up excitedly.

“I got it!” Miles said running to the door, while the other kids gathered around the Island making their pizza.

“Look through the peephole first Miles!”

Mercedes said as she and Santana started singing along to Destiny's Child “Independent women.” As they helped the other kids.

Miles ran to the door, looking through the peephole before opening. “We didn’t think you guys were gonna make it! We are in the kitchen making Pizza.”

He didn’t even notice Sam, just pulled Stevie and Stacey into the kitchen figuring the man with them would shut the door.

Sam watched as Stevie and Stacy left him at the door. He was going to just turn around to the car, but decided to at least make sure they are good before he headed out. He walked into Mercedes place and closed the door behind him. He went in the direction of Stacy’s blonde ponytail. When he got to the kitchen, he couldn’t believe how loud it was and cramped, and how good it smelled.

“Um, excuse me. Mercedes.” he said softly, but when she didn’t acknowledge him, he repeated himself a bit louder. “Mercedes!”

Mercedes was in the middle of her dance break, which included shaking her hips to the music when she heard her name being called.  Turning she was shocked to see Sam standing in her kitchen. Swallowing hard she shook off her moment of embarrassment by drying her hands on the dish towel.  

“Sam? Oh hey! Sorry we were just making pizza. Hey guys!” She said moving to hug Stacey and then Stevie. “You pizza is all ready for you to add your toppings so wash your hands then have at it.”

She moved away from the island and over to Sam. “Thanks again for bringing them by. They will be in great hands.”

Sam nodded at her. He knew they would be in good hands because his mother doesn’t just trust anyone with her kids.

“Yea, sorry we’re late. We were running a little behind schedule. And if you need to get in contact with someone you would have to call my parents because I’ll be gone for the weekend.” Sam took a good look at Mercedes and chuckled a bit. “Oh, and by the way, you have some dough on your cheek. Looks good though,” he said teasing.

“No problem, Trust me I get it.” She said knowing the struggle of getting kids out on time. “I remember, you are supposed to be relaxing and enjoying your weekend.” Sam laughed at her and she immediately lifted her hand to her face wiping. “Did I get it?”

“Uh, no. You actually put more on there.” Sam pulled out his clean handkerchief and wiped the smudges from her cheeks. He didn’t move his hand right away because there was something about her and he didn’t know what it was. One minute he was cold and uncaring towards her, but then the next he was enamored with her. And of course that was a problem all on it’s own.

His hand raised to her face and she was shocked her was even helping her, she stared at him as he wiped the dough and smiled as her eyes caught his. He was an enigma to her, she usually could figure people out but Sam, he was not one of them. She barely knew what he was thinking let alone how to act around him.

“Ahem!”

Mercedes thoughts were halted as the clearing of the throat caught her attention, she turned to see Santana staring at them.

“What’s going on here?”

Mercedes ran her hands through her hair. “Oh nothing, Mr. Evans was just dropping the kids off and he noticed I had something on my face.” She said quickly. Why did it feel like they had just been caught doing something wrong? She cleared her own throat. “Speaking of which you should be going, I know you have a flight to catch.”

Sam removed his hands right away and put them in his pocket. He didn’t know what was going on with him, but he needed to get a grip. “I do. And Quinn is waiting in the car. My mom will probably pick the kids up tomorrow. But you have her contact information I’m sure.” Sam glanced at the girl standing next to Mercedes before glancing back. “I guess I’ll see you on Tuesday.” He turned and headed out to his waiting car. When he got to his car, he glanced back at the house once more before getting in. He needed to relax and hopefully this weekend will let him do that.

* * *

 

As Sam left Mercedes went back to helping the kids, but could feel Santana’s eyes on her. “What?”

“Yes, exactly what? Like what the hell did I just walk in on?”

Placing the finished Pizza’s into the oven Mercedes shook her head, “Nothing, nothing at all.”

Folding her arms, Santana leaned against the wall. “Yeah that didn’t look like nothing, that man was oozing pure sex and you were lapping it up like you ain’t have your thirst quenched in a long time.”

“Okay first of all, stop there are kids around and second. Drop it.”

“Drop it? This is the juiciest thing that has happened since Kurt dumped Elliot.”

“Santana, drop it, you are looking for something that isn’t there.”

Pushing off against the wall, Santana laughed. “Uh huh.”

“Can you just help me finish up here, please?”

Mercedes was doing her best, trying not to let her mind wonder, whatever just happened between her and Sam was nothing more than him helping her out. That's all it was and all it could be, they were from two completely different words not to mention he was practically engaged. She closed her eyes still feeling his hand on her face again but shook it off. He was her boss and that was all he was ever gonna be.


End file.
